Archive for the ‘John McMullen’ tag

Going through my coverage of RM’s McMullen auction, I realize I’ll only have space to discuss one of the two Trans Am Kammbacks that John McMullen sold last weekend.

While most people have seen the second-generation Type K in magazines and books, few people realize Pontiac tried the same thing in 1985 with a third-gen Firebird Trans Am. According to the auction description, GM had scrapped plans to offer Kammback body styles on the F-bodies in 1970, but the idea hung around GM’s Tech Center and culminated in two third-gen Kammbacks, using a squared-off hatch in place of the fastback hatch. This particular car remained with GM until 1998, when McMullen – a Pontiac dealer – came across it and bought it for his own collection.

The Kammback has the 5.0L H.O. V-8 and (according to the auction description) a four-speed manual transmission. Though it showed 36,212 miles on the odometer, Scott Tiemann had worked his magic and restored it to showroom condition. That is, had it ever been in a showroom. We rated its condition at #1 and watched it sell for $66,000.

This M.G. failed to make the winner’s circle at Le Mans, but it was a winner at the Hilton Head Island Concours some 70 years later.

In 1935, M.G. scored a publicity coup when Captain George Eyston, the land
speed record holder, entered an all-female team at Le Mans. The six women,
who came to be called Easton’s Racing Daughters, succeeded in grabbing
the spotlight, but missed out in the trophy department. Their 847cc P-type
Midgets finished at the front of their class, but only in 24th-, 25th- and
26th- place overall–well behind the 1st- 3rd- and 4th-place overall
finishes racked up by rival Singer. M.G.’s spanking gave rise to the successful PB, with a bored-out 939cc engine producing 43hp to the PA’s 35hp.
Seventy years later, JB 6158, driven by Joan Richmond and Mrs. Gordon
Simpson at Le Mans, was again in the spotlight, chosen best in its class at
the fourth annual Hilton Head Island Concours d’Elegance in Hilton Head
Island, South Carolina. The car is owned by George Shelley of Pompano Beach,,Florida. Other class-winning sports cars included Shelley’s 1947 Cisitalia D-46 and a 1963 Jaguar XKE owned by Richard Maury of Snellville, Georgia.
Bobby Rahal was the honorary chairman for this year’s Concours, held from
November 3-6. More than 400 vintage cars were on display over the weekend.
Best of Show was awarded to John and Dora McMullen of Lapeer, Michigan, for
their 1911 Thomas Flyabout, while the People’s Choice was awarded to Robert
and Brigitte Thayer of Atlanta, Georgia, for their 1930 Packard 745 Roadster.